Chapter 398: Chapter 120: Contest

“I’m sorry, Ed. There was a small issue on my way here, so that’s why I arrived only now.” Tom Cruise, who finally made it to the studio, greeted Adrian with a grin, but his smile didn’t look sincere.

“No worries, everyone has unexpected issues to deal with, right?” Adrian shrugged, seemingly unconcerned, “As long as it doesn’t delay the shooting.”

However, he then forcefully patted Cruise on the arm, his expression turning a bit more meaningful, “Still, I hope there won’t be a next time, understand?”

Cruise’s face stiffened, but he maintained his smile and nodded, “Okay, got it.”

Conflicts over influence between top directors and celebrities on set have a long history. Kubrick once had an unpleasant experience with Marlon Brando. Since Cruise was always wary of Adrian, partly because of Kubrick’s reputation, and had already suffered a setback while preparing for “Jerry Maguire,” even if persuaded by Adrian, he probably still harbored thoughts of using his star status to exert his own power.

But that was as far as he could go. While Cruise could occasionally act foolish, it didn’t mean he was always foolish. After being persuaded and reminded by Kingsley last time, he had somewhat understood Adrian’s capabilities; even if reluctant, he had to behave following the warning.

Many people assume that celebrities hold more power on set; however, this is not the case. This misconception arises because the celebrities’ fame far exceeds that of directors. In fact, the key to who holds the power on set lies in who also takes on the producer’s role. If a director also serves as the producer, then the star must comply if they want to continue shooting; if a celebrity doubles as the producer, then the director must consider the celebrity’s demands. There are no exceptions, except for Adrian.

The reason is simple: no other top director has achieved such great success in filmmaking while also being the chairman of a major new media company like Adrian. Though Lucas’s Industrial Light Magic dominates a major portion of the special effects market, and Spielberg is one of the Three Giants of DreamWorks, none can compare to Adrian.

Not to mention, over the past years, many blockbuster movies and TV shows have been related to Adrian in one way or another; nor to mention his uncanny vision, where actors and directors under his guidance have shone brilliantly. Just owning the broadcast companies TBS and ABC places him on par with Murdoch and Redstone. With such capabilities, even the most popular stars dare not disrespect him. Katherine Hepburn owed her leeway to the media benefits of the ’50s and ’60s, for she would never dare refuse to attend the Oscar ceremony four times in today’s environment.

“By the way, where is your wife?” Adrian then asked.

“She had other matters to handle and couldn’t make time today, but I believe it won’t happen again,” Cruise replied without blinking as he stared at Adrian.

“Alright then, let’s shoot the scene where Doctor William handles his boss’s dirty business at the party. Before you arrived, we were just rehearsing that part. If it goes well, we’ll move on to the pool room scene next, and we’ll leave the group scenes at the party until tomorrow. Go over the script quickly,” Adrian responded nonchalantly, as if he had just casually asked the question before.

“No problem.” Cruise nodded, signaling his assistant to bring the script as he headed to his spot. After a few steps, he turned back to look at Adrian, continuing on his way only after seeing him busy with something else.

“Remember, Sidney has to walk from here to here, taking larger steps to reflect your mood at the moment. Besides that, you’re free to improvise, just make sure not to exceed the emotional range from the fifth rehearsal. Tommy, when you reach this point, pause briefly, with a subtle look of surprise, and don’t linger too long; you’ll have to gauge the timing yourself…” Inside a makeshift resting area on the set, Adrian explained to the two actors, simultaneously shaping a frame with his hands, essentially showing the photographer the scope of the shot.

“Alright, let’s get it brewing; we’re going to start shooting momentarily,” Adrian said as he sat back down in his chair.

The story of “Eyes Wide Shut” is quite simple: a couple, married for several years, begins to feel weary of their marriage. At a party, misunderstandings occur when the male protagonist, Doctor William, solves a problem for his boss, yet his wife Alice mistakenly thinks he is cheating on her, almost ending up in bed with an old man.

Then Alice, fueled by the thrill of smoking marijuana, confessed her past sexual fantasies to her husband. Doctor William, troubled by the revelation burst into numerous unfavorable associations. He eventually stumbled upon an old college acquaintance playing piano at a bar, who lured him into a high-society party that bore semblance to a religious ceremony, triggering an even greater uproar.

Someone in memory once commented that Kubrick aimed to discuss marital relationships here, but no one really knows the truth, as the old man never disclosed what his movies were meant to express. Perhaps for him, it was merely about shooting an atypical erotic movie. At least according to Adrian’s knowledge, some high society individuals indeed hosted such parties, though they were not only scarce but also highly secretive, and never on the scale depicted in the movies.

Reflecting further, Schnitzler’s Dream Story was written in the early 20th century–an era that need not be elaborated upon, where such occurrences in European high society were far from abnormal. But in today’s media-saturated age, hosting such a large-scale event would be akin to courting disaster. Thus, Kubrick’s decision to set the stage in contemporary New York was quite awkward. Of course, no one knew exactly what was going through that half-bald head, and Adrian had taken on the project for reasons other than these.

“Don’t try too hard to act, just live as if you’re at home, forget the camera and us, understand?” After spending three days finishing the shots of treating an overdosed prostitute in the lounge, they started filming the domestic scenes of the doctor couple upon Nicole Kidman’s arrival.

As Cruise and Nicole both nodded in agreement, Adrian waved his hand to signal everyone to begin, treating Nicole as a stranger just like before. Fortunately, these scenes weren’t dialogue-heavy nor did they require much acting, avoiding the three days it had taken to film the treatment scenes.

Adrian wasn’t Kubrick, and he had his own standards for performance, along with a long-developed habit. He wasn’t obsessed with perfection in the way Kubrick was, who kept shooting endlessly even though the actors were performing well. Nevertheless, a relatively straightforward treatment scene still took nearly three days to shoot, which said a lot about Cruise’s poor acting skills.

Even though there were external factors, such as Cruise’s poor condition at the start of the shoot or frequent minor issues, Cruise’s acting was indeed a significant reason for the slow progress. Therefore, he had to first dismiss the temporary actors hired for a cocktail party scene to concentrate on completing the treatment scenes, which is why they couldn’t shoot with Nicole when she arrived.

Fortunately, the filming went smoothly, and they managed to complete the relatively simple domestic scenes and a few shots showcasing the male protagonist at work in just a day and a half.

“Very good, then let’s clear the set,” Adrian said to the assistant director after reviewing the footage and noting that the break time had arrived. The crew promptly started to move, setting up the necessary lighting and color adjustments; then, except for a few key personnel, everyone else exited the stage.

“You seem a bit nervous,” Adrian approached Nicole, who had already changed into her required costume.

She wore a black slim-strapped evening dress, revealing most of her smooth back, and due to the high heels, her posterior was quite pronounced. Her hair was tied back, exposing her pale neck, and her long legs subtly peeked out from the slit of her dress–she was indeed at her most enchanting.

“I’m fine, no issues at all,” Nicole responded tersely, her eyes fixed on him, but Adrian quickly averted his gaze, showing no attachment.

“You too, Tom?” he asked. “Maybe we could do this, have Nicole wear green lingerie and then composite it in post-production.”

“I think that’s completely unnecessary.” Nicole responded before Cruise could speak, a fleeting look of displeasure crossing Cruise’s face, but he eventually concurred with his wife.

“Yes, not necessary,” he said in a forced casual tone.

Chuckling internally, Adrian maintained a calm and detached demeanor, “Then let’s begin.”

There were two scenes to shoot. The first involved Nicole Kidman undressing in front of the camera–though only her back would be shown. This was the reason for clearing the set, but to Adrian, it seemed just like an act of deceiving oneself, as countless people would end up seeing it once the film was released.

Although her back was to the camera, and even though this scene was a film shoot, Nicole still seemed incredibly seductive, especially when her back gradually became exposed, her clothes fell to the floor, and she stepped forward with her slender and symmetrical right leg slightly lifting up. Adrian heard several breaths quicken–after all, opportunities to openly watch such a seductress disrobe were rare.

“Very good,” Adrian called out a halt immediately. The female assistant, who had been waiting nearby, stepped forward the first time and draped a towel over Nicole. Adrian glanced at Cruise, who was standing not far away, staring intently at Nicole on the set. He appeared unconcerned on the surface, but the displeasure in his eyes was noticeable.

“Let them come in, get ready for the second shot.” After Cruise and Nicole went back to the makeup room, Adrian said this. Though he would have liked to watch her undress again, he knew the priorities and, moreover…

The next scene was of a similar type so the crew spent dozens of minutes turning the bathroom into a bedroom then exited again, following which Cruise and Nicole, both draped in white towels, walked out.

“I don’t need to say much this time, just relax as if you’re at home,” said Adrian, then waved his hand to indicate they were ready to start.

Naturally, the second shot was the one selected for the poster, depicting a naked couple kissing in front of a vanity, while the wife craftily watched someone in the mirror.

As the word “Action” was called, the two, with their towels removed, immediately took their places. To ease the atmosphere on set, Adrian had the background music played live on site. Nicole, facing the mirror and fiddling with an earring, gently swayed her body to the music before Cruise approached from behind and began kissing her.

Although they were naked, essential areas were still covered. For instance, Cruise wore a flesh-colored triangular brief, Nicole similarly below and a close-matching nipple patch on top. In post-production, slight adjustments would ensure these were unnoticeable. After all, they couldn’t truly expose their bodies entirely, even if it seemed a bit like self-deception.

The funniest part was, due to Cruise’s height, the props team had to place something at least a few feet tall on the ground; otherwise, he would appear slightly shorter than Nicole in the shots.

“Very good!” Adrian clapped his hands. This difficult shot was accomplished in one take which was a relief to the few people on set. Thus, today’s schedule was considered complete.

“Okay, after these few days of acclimatizing, we should all be more aware of each other’s situations. I hope our cooperation will continue to be smooth and enjoyable,” Adrian said, escorting the Cruises outside the studio.

“I think it will be,” smiled Cruise, still sounding perfunctory. Nicole seemed to want to say something but hesitated. By the time she decided, Adrian had already walked back inside the studio, treating her as if she were a stranger.

Watching his retreating figure, Nicole subconsciously bit her lip. Cruise had to call her a few times before she responded, “What?”

“What’s wrong? Is there a problem?” Cruise looked at her displeased.

“No, nothing. I just…” Nicole took a deep breath and looked towards the studio again, “I just don’t like him.”

“I don’t like him either,” Cruise seemed pleased that she said this. “But we have to keep working with him for now because he’s still useful. So, let’s just ignore him–that’s all we need to do. Let’s go.”

Nicole glanced at Cruise with disappointment, clearly having had enough of his arrogant words, so she silently followed behind him.

Adrian wasn’t aware of this, and even if he had been, he wouldn’t have cared, because he was clear about certain things. He had been prepared to shoot the scene multiple times, but unexpectedly, it was perfect on the first take. By his standards, the shot was on point, especially the moment when the camera zoomed in on the embracing couple and the wife turned her head, looking at the person in the mirror with unease and resistance.

It required quite a performance to convey that sense of harboring a secret, which was a bit difficult for Nicole at the moment, but she managed to do it because, although she was looking at the mirror, her gaze was truly on Adrian in the reflection!

How could Adrian, who seemed indifferent yet was actually attentive, not notice? It was truly interesting, revealing quite a lot.

“Mr. Adrian!” As he walked toward the parking lot, a distant voice interrupted his thoughts and soon, a slightly overweight, white man in his forties wearing a baseball cap appeared in front of him.

“Hello, Mr. Adrian, I am a reporter from the Los Angeles Times, my name is Jeff Harris. May I ask you a few questions?” Seeing him pause, the man immediately introduced himself.

“I’m sorry, I’m not taking any interviews right now,” Adrian smiled and shook his head, taking a few steps toward his car.

“Director Stanley Kubrick suffered a stroke and couldn’t complete his new film, so you took over, is that correct?” The man asked, seemingly regardless of the previous response.

Adrian’s body stiffened for a moment, but he quickly turned his head and gave a mocking smile, “Sorry, where did you hear that?”

“So, there is such a thing? You’re working on that movie now, aren’t you?” Although the pause had been brief, the reporter, seasoned and prepared, didn’t miss the subtle signals and immediately fired off a barrage of questions.

“Unfortunately, I have nothing to say,” Adrian shrugged and got into his car, “Sorry, but I need to go home now, please don’t delay me?”

With that, he ignored the man’s shouting, started his car, and drove out of the parking lot, breathing a sigh of relief only after he was some distance away: “It’s surprising that news has gotten out so quickly.”

Although Kubrick had emphasized that no one should know Adrian had taken over his new movie before production, it’s hard to keep such a secret in a crew full of people. Keeping the film’s content secret was possible, but hiding the identity of the director was another matter. Moreover, the involvement of the Cruise couple in Kubrick’s new project was already well-known in the industry. By piecing together these bits of information, one could easily draw conclusions.

The old man with the stroke knew it was impossible to keep it completely secret, which is why, despite his persistence, he didn’t include this in the contract. He probably hoped the media would find out as late as possible, otherwise, even if he wasn’t satisfied and disagreed with the film’s release, his reputation would still unavoidably be impacted.

Warner also knew that the news could only be delayed and not completely concealed, which is why they agreed to proceed. However, judging from the current situation, it was hard to tell if the leak was accidental or if Warner had spread the news deliberately.

Adrian pondered for a moment and then smiled, shaking his head. Let it be, it was just a matter of time anyway, and the impact wasn’t significant. As for how the media would react, that would be known in a few days.

Indeed, two days later, the Los Angeles Times published a headline on the front page: Miracle Director Versus Legendary Director! (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to go to Qidian (wuxiaworld.site) to vote for recommendation tickets and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)